Glossary of key photographic words
Composition- the arrangement of the elements in a picture; main subject, foreground and background.
Focus- the position at which rays of light from a lens, forms a clear and sharply defined image on a focal plane.
Gradient- a colour or grey tone fill that gradually changes in density across the selected area.
Tone- the amount of lightness or darkness in any given area of an image.
Contrast- the range of difference in the light to dark areas in an image; the brightness range in the photo, (may be explained in tonal range).
Aperture- the hole or opening in a camera lens through which light passes to expose the film. The size of the aperture is either fixed or adjustable.
Blurred- un-sharp areas in an image, formed or caused by subject/camera movement or by selective or incorrect focusing.
Depth of field- the sharpness in front of and behind the subject on which the lens is focused.
Exposed- the right quantity of light that has reached a photographic film.
Over exposed- where too much light has reaches the film, which produces a dense negative or a very light transparency.
Under exposed- where too little light reaches the film, which produces a thin negative or a muddy looking print.
Panoramic- a captured image on a wide format it includes much more than what eyes can see naturally from a point (wide format photography).
Grain- the pattern of extremely small spots of black and white/ colour, which forms an image.
Texture- the surface quality of an image.
Space- refers to the distance or areas around, between or within components of a piece.
Foreground- part of a scene or space around an object that appears closest to the camera.
Background- the part of the scene which appear behind the focal area of the picture.
Shutter- device which controls the time of exposure of a light-sensitive material.
Cropping- removal of the outer parts of an image to improve framing etc. or change aspect ratio.
Resolution- the ability of a lens to discern small detail.
Saturation- a measure of the strength of colour in a photograph.
Focus- the position at which rays of light from a lens, forms a clear and sharply defined image on a focal plane.
Gradient- a colour or grey tone fill that gradually changes in density across the selected area.
Tone- the amount of lightness or darkness in any given area of an image.
Contrast- the range of difference in the light to dark areas in an image; the brightness range in the photo, (may be explained in tonal range).
Aperture- the hole or opening in a camera lens through which light passes to expose the film. The size of the aperture is either fixed or adjustable.
Blurred- un-sharp areas in an image, formed or caused by subject/camera movement or by selective or incorrect focusing.
Depth of field- the sharpness in front of and behind the subject on which the lens is focused.
Exposed- the right quantity of light that has reached a photographic film.
Over exposed- where too much light has reaches the film, which produces a dense negative or a very light transparency.
Under exposed- where too little light reaches the film, which produces a thin negative or a muddy looking print.
Panoramic- a captured image on a wide format it includes much more than what eyes can see naturally from a point (wide format photography).
Grain- the pattern of extremely small spots of black and white/ colour, which forms an image.
Texture- the surface quality of an image.
Space- refers to the distance or areas around, between or within components of a piece.
Foreground- part of a scene or space around an object that appears closest to the camera.
Background- the part of the scene which appear behind the focal area of the picture.
Shutter- device which controls the time of exposure of a light-sensitive material.
Cropping- removal of the outer parts of an image to improve framing etc. or change aspect ratio.
Resolution- the ability of a lens to discern small detail.
Saturation- a measure of the strength of colour in a photograph.